“Mommy blogger” cred wanes amid compensation for positive posts

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July 17, 2009

When so-called “mommy blogs” first started proliferating online a few years ago, they offered advice and experiences from “real moms” that weren’t found in glossy parenting magazines. But as Newsweek reports, there are now thousands of self-described mom bloggers, and a divide has grown between those who blog as a kind of online support group and those who blog for cash and perks.

Many mom bloggers now work with marketers or companies, and the products they review have grown beyond baby food and diaper bags. Some test-drive cars for months or are sent on lavish paid trips to places like Disney World, the magazine reports.

The new breed of mom bloggers isn’t really writing about juggling work and kids, Danielle Wiley, senior vice president for social media and consumer brands at PR giant Edelman is quoted as saying. “These blogs are created to get products or to make money,” she says. When bloggers write favorable posts without disclosing that they’ve been compensated, unsuspecting readers who’ve come looking for a blogger’s personal opinion are instead getting what amounts to an ad. For companies and marketers, paying for a post gives them some control over the content.

But transparency could soon be enforced. The Federal Trade Commission recently announced it is considering new guidelines that would require bloggers to disclose when they are paid by an advertiser to talk about a product.  — Compiled by Greg Beaubien for Tactics and The Strategist Online

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